A U.S. District Court judge has issued a ruling that, if passed, would require Ohio to recognize the marriages of same-sex couples.
U.S. District Court judge Timothy Black has announced that, within the next 10 days, he plans to issue a rule against Ohio’s anti-marriage law. The measure won’t strike down the ban in its entirety, but it’s a step forward. It’s expected that the decision will declare the state of Ohio as a state that must respect the marriages of same-sex couples who were legally married in other states.
A decision is expected by Monday, April 14. A court summary released today declared the following statement:
“A written decision will issue on or before 4/14/14. The Court anticipates striking down as unconstitutional under all circumstances Ohio’s bans on recognizing legal same-sex marriages from other states.”
Last year, Judge Black had ruled that the state of Ohio must recognize the legal marriages of same-sex couples (who had been married elsewhere) for the purpose of listing a spouse of a death certificate. The ruling is currently being appealed.
Today’s news was celebrated Freedom to Marry founder and president Evan Wolfson. “This decision will make a real difference to legally married gay Ohio couples,” he stated, “affirming that their home state may not deny them and their families legal protections and the basic dignity of treating them as what they are: married. Couples should not have to wonder whether they are still married or not depending on what state line they’ve crossed. This common-sense and constitutional ruling adds to the momentum across the country in favor of the freedom to marry.”
Photo: Wikipedia
